Arcadia Liquors – Redfern

The word arcadia conjures images of rolling, verdant hills with nubile nymphs frolicking under trees whereas Redfern conjures … let’s just say different images. And yet there is something joyous and beautiful about Arcadia Liquors, the new small bar in Redfern that’s just a few minutes from The Dock.

For a start, its courtyard is the best I’ve seen in Sydney. That’s a big call, but to my fevered imagination it almost looks like an ancient grotto, with plants hanging everywhere, and various nooks and crannies in which nymphs are smoking. Then again, I did have a few drinks before venturing out there.
Inside Arcadia, all the boxes for a good small bar are ticked:

there’s a great long wooden bar counter with stools

a simple but solid selection of cocktails including a negroni and an old fashioned

friendly staff

Dixieland music that’s not too loud for conversation

a casual, arty and eclectic crowd of people that actually try to help me as I crawl around the floor of the bar looking for something I dropped (hey, I never said I was suave).

On a cocktail note, the whiskey sour I buy for $14 is perfectly done – made with Jim Beam Rye, it’s got just the right balance of sourness and sweetness.

On a food note, I notice people eating takeaway food from other places, so you can apparently satisfy your stomach’s urges here. Since I consider eating to be a sign of weakness, however, I choose not to investigate this further.

And on that note, I will end this glowing review. I like the bar. I cannot fault it. The end.

Arcadia Liquors. 7 Cope Street, Redfern (it’s just off the corner of Regent and Redfern Street). Open Monday to Saturday until midnight, Sunday until 10pm. Check out the Arcadia Liquors website